Clinton or Obama, they'll get my vote

I've gotten some interesting mail since my last post, mostly from Hillary Clinton supporters. It's appreciated. (Really, I'm serious.) I feel I should clarify why I was singling out Clinton supporters specifically. It's not because I'm an Obama supporter, although I am. (I feel Clinton's strong negatives would make it much harder for her to win the general election.) It's simply because, short of some serious arm-twisting in smoke-filled rooms, Clinton doesn't have a clear path to the nomination. Unless Obama implodes dramatically, he's going to be the nominee. That makes it important that current Clinton supporters be willing to get behind him in November. Were the situation reversed, I'd have been writing the same post about Obama-ites instead of Clintonistas.

A few months ago I think we all thought this would be an easy election for Democrats. Since then, the Republicans have, in spite of internal misgivings, managed to nominate their strongest candidate. Meanwhile, our candidates — either of which would be an excellent choice as President — have been tearing each other down and effectively writing McCain's attack ads for him. Slowly but surely, our lead has been erased. We now face a tough slog in the general election.

The Democratic party simply can't afford to fall apart into internal bickering. If a sixth of our voters decide to stay home because they're bitter about the primary, we will lose. That means not just losing the White House for the next four years; it means losing the Supreme Court for a generation.

So, yes, I support Obama. But if Clinton is the nominee, I'll gladly go and vote for her. I fervently hope other Democratic voters will be able to look past this hard-fought primary and see that either candidate is preferable to four more years with a Republican in the White House.